R.E.M. Going For ‘Old-School’ Sound With Next Album

According to former[lastfm]R.E.M.[/lastfm] touring member [lastfm]Ken Stringfellow[/lastfm], the band’s new album will mark a return to a more “old-school” sound.

In an interview with NME, Stringfellow said of the new album: “It’s sounding really great, very old-school. The first track had vocals which were mixed super low which I couldn’t understand and I was like, ‘Yes, a return to form.’ Mike was on about pushing the vocals up and I was like, ‘No, don’t do it.'”

He added: “What’s cool about classic R.E.M. is that you have an electric and acoustic guitar coming along like the[lastfm]Byrds[/lastfm]. There’s a lot of that in there, there’s some piano songs too, but I didn’t hear a lot of crazy, freaky keyboards and vintage drum machines in there like the period when I was with them.”

The offering, which will be the band’s 15th studio album, has not yet been given a name. It is expected to be released in the spring of 2011 and will be their first album since 2008’s Accelerate.